This ultra-low-cost carrier expects to grow significantly over the next decade. Fresh off the announcement of four new routes from Las Vegas, Frontier Airlines is looking to press upcoming aircraft into service to expand significantly.

The Colorado-based carrier is looking to increase the number of seats it offers by between 10% and 20% a year from the year after next. The most recent investor report for the airline places capacity growth for the third quarter of this year at 8% to 10%. Growth for 2022 overall is estimated to reach between 12% and 15%.

The group aims to group capacity by as much as 20% per year beginning in 2024. Speaking to Reuters, airline Chief Executive Officer Barry Biffles outlined the goals for the airline and reiterated its focus on the affordable market:

"We will now be positioned in the market as the only national ultra-low-cost carrier."

The airline was recently the subject of a much-discussed bid to take over rival Spirit Air Lines, which was ultimately unsuccessful.

Betting on budget

Airline boss Barry Biffle sees Frontier's distinct market segment as a recession-proof path to growth. In speaking to Reuters, Biffle cited examples of recent booms for value brands such as Walmart over the books of upscale brands such as Nordstrom during times of recession and decreased economic activity.

The airline is also reaching out into smaller cities that have seen frequencies and routes cut by other US carriers suffering from staffing shortages. Larger carriers, including Delta Air Lines, continue to face schedule reductions, with American Airlines preemptively reducing its schedule by 16% over the upcoming Thanksgiving period. Frontier Airlines has a relatively large pool of pilots and cut only 1% of its flights for the first half of a year which saw 129,000 flights canceled between January and July.

Frontier also recently launched a cadet program to train pilots, enabling the incoming flight crew to enter the workforce in as little as two years.

Over two hundred aircraft on order

A spokesperson for Frontier Airlines highlighted upcoming aircraft as key to the rapid expansion. The airline made a significant additional aircraft order last year, increasing the total of orders to 234 aircraft, all in the Airbus family. In the months since November 2021, the carrier has taken delivery of several new aircraft, which will support the company's growth.

Three A320neo aircraft were received by the Denver-based LCC during the second quarter of this year, with four planned aircraft deliveries during the current quarter and eight over the upcoming fourth quarter of 2022. Frontier Airlines already operates the largest A320neo fleet in the US.

Frontier's current fleet includes 114 Airbus single-aisle aircraft, divided between 78 A320neos, 15 A320ceos, and 21 A321ceos. The relative youth of Frontier's fleet makes it the most fuel-efficient of all major US carriers, generating just 100 airline seat miles per gallon during the second quarter of 2022.

The fleet's average age looks even lower with outstanding commitments to purchase an additional 229 aircraft delivered through 2029. The order includes 71 A320neo aircraft and 158 A321neo aircraft. The introduction of the A321neo aircraft in the second half of 2022 will advance the current fuel economies and unlock new routes.

Frontier Airlines previously dismissed the idea of using the new aircraft for transatlantic service.

Room for growth

The airline recently announced four new routes from Las Vegas. Frontier is already the third-largest airline operating from the Nevada city and will serve three new city pairs and one decade-old resumption. The carrier will fly from Harry Ried International Airport daily to Baltimore-Washington International, Buffalo, and Hartford. The final daily addition will be to Kansas City, a route Frontier ended almost a decade ago, in October 2012.

The airline is also expanding next month out of Denver. Beginning September 7th, 2022, Frontier Airlines will also fly once daily between Denver and Houston Hobby aboard an Airbus A320. Frontier Airlines also recently broke ground on a 120,000-square-foot ground boarding facility at the airport. The expansion of the concourse features 14 gates, new customer amenities, and an 8,000-square-foot maintenance facility.

Source: Reuters